Background: Currently injured with a serious knee injury that will keep him out of postseason events and may cause him to miss time early in his NFL season. He had previously torn the ACL in both his left and right knees, teams will be wary of this come draft day. Was a leader both on and off the field at Penn State, the team honoured him with #42 decals on their helmets after his senior season ended due to injury. 2012 Big Ten Linebacker of the year. Made a passionate speech to the Penn State roster shortly after the sanctions were handed down post Sandusky scandal. Finished his senior season with 96 total tackles, 4 TFL, 2.5 sacks, 3 INT’s and 3 FF’s. Will be 23 on draft day.

Strengths: Mauti is a very heady and instinctive linebacker, he plays a read and react game and does it very well. Reads both traditional run games and the zone read running games well coming downhill and taking good angles to the football to make tackles. He is a sound tackler who rarely misses, wraps up well and shows the ability to drive through the ball carrier. At his best in coverage, made two great plays vs Illinois and another vs Iowa, he is active in zones, keeps his head on a swivel and keeps his feet active able to drive downhill and attack the football. Shows very good hands for the interception, a natural catcher, agile in short spaces and has quick feet, solid change of direction skills, can play man coverage on backs and Tight Ends, though is less effective doing the latter. Plays disciplined in the running game, maintains gap control and shows a willingness to play contain to force the ball carrier to other defenders. Willing to play downhill to attack the lead blocker in the hole. High Motor player who will chase down plays from the backside and fight until the whistle. Adds value on special teams on punt and kick coverage units.

Weaknesses: Not a lot of experience rushing the passer, and not a lot of technique involved when he does. Struggles to disengage from blockers and can be driven out of the play by Tight Ends and Offensive Linemen. Three torn ligaments in 4 years, both his knees, both his ACL’s there is going to be a lot to look at in the knees of Mauti. Looks top heavy and lacks the ability to anchor if needed.

Overall: Mauti is a classic Penn State Linebacker. Solid size, very smart and instinctive player, does the fundamentals very well (Gap Control, Discipline, Tackling) and is a very good cover man. His knee injuries are going to be a big worry for any team that picks him up and the medical checks at the combine are going to be very important for him, some teams will likely remove him from their board entirely because of his injury history. His lack of functional strength and inability to anchor against the Tight End in the running game could turn off some teams, but he is willing to do the dirty work in the trenches. Mauti is a leader of men and carries the respect of every person involved in Penn State football and he should enjoy a long NFL career as both a Linebacker and a ST’s contributor. Not flashy, but does everything that is asked of him. Makes the simple plays that allows a defense to function. I would be willing to spend a second round pick on Mauti, but we could see his knee injuries drop him further down the draft into the late fourth, early fifth round range (ala O’Brien Schofield/Josh Chapman) and if he passes the requisite medical checks he will prove to be great value in that area.

Background: Recruited heavily out of High School as a safety, Ogletree grew into the body of a Linebacker and that is where he will make his mark at the next level. Not a full time starter his Junior year and then was suspended to start his senior season. Has just 16 career starts as a linebacker but in that time has 150 total tackles, 16 TFL, 5 sacks and 7 pass breakups. Will be 22 on draft day.

Strengths: Great athlete for the position, great footspeed and a very fast player, agile in short spaces, and make himself small and shoot gaps in the offensive line. High Motor, plays through to the whistle and his athleticism allows him to be always at or around the football. Is a good blitzer, his athleticism really comes to the fore here he has the explosive ability to fly past blockers and into the backfield vs both the run and the pass. Is a good coverage man who has lined up as a safety and a slot corner at different times this season for Georgia, flexible hips allow him to flip and run if needed a rare ability for a linebacker to have, has the ability to play man coverage on athletic Tight Ends and compete with them for the football.

Weaknesses: Lacks the playing strength of a linebacker, is consistently driven out of plays on the ground, he looks tentative at times to play downhill against the run and waits for offensive linemen to come to him, by which point he is usually already out of the play or the play has been made. Struggles to diagnose the play well and is often late to react, takes false steps against the run and can easily be caught out by playaction, has a tendency to overrun plays allowing runners to cutback into open spaces. Not a consistent tackler and will fall off tackles against more powerful runners.

Overall: Ogletree is still learning his craft as a linebacker and it shows on the field. His hesitancy to attack the LOS is worrying and he is a liability against the run both with his slow reactions, lack of an anchor and poor pursuit angles taking him out of the play more often than one would want. He is however a superior athlete at the position who is good in coverage and will fit well into a pass heavy NFL especially in nickel and dime situations. Those same situations will also play to his strengths attacking the pocket on the blitz against both the run and the pass. His athleticism and showings at the combine where he should be among the stars is going to make a lot of teams up their interest in him with the hopes of putting him in an NFL film room and giving him the coaching that will help to get his mental game on the same level as his physical game. For me a linebacker that needs their instincts and play around the LOS to improve to make it to an adequate level is not a guy I want to spend a high round draft pick on, Ogletree is likely off the board before the end of the second round, but I would not draft him until the fourth round where his ability as a subpackage linebacker will be attractive._________________